Tag: Japan

Circle of Life Can Turn The Tables in Yushun Himba

Masatake Iida homebred Circle of Life (Jpn) (Epiphaneia {Jpn}) was perfect in three starts last term to secure champion juvenile filly honours, but will be looking for her first victory as a 3-year-old in a well-matched renewal of the G1 Yushun Himba (Japanese Oaks) Sunday at Tokyo Racecourse.

Winner of the 1600-metre G3 Artemis S. at headquarters last October, the bay–whose sire has accounted for 2020 Oaks heroine Daring Tact (Jpn) and reigning Horse of the Year Efforia (Jpn)–came from worse than midfield to post a half-length success in the G1 Hanshin Juvenile Fillies in December before taking some time off. A sound third to Namur (Jpn) (Harbinger {GB}) and Pin High (Jpn) (Mikki Isle {Jpn}) in the G3 Tulip Sho going the metric mile Mar. 5, Circle of Life endured a wide passage from a high draw in the G1 Oka Sho (Japanese 1000 Guineas) last time Apr. 10 and kicked home to be fourth, beaten 3/4 of a length behind Stars on Earth (Jpn) (Duramente {Jpn}). She has a much cosier barrier this time in six, and that could just be the difference-maker. Jockey Mirco Demuro goes for a third Oaks in the last four years.

“If she's able to run nicely balanced, she has a great late kick,” said trainer Sakae Kunieda, who won the Oaks in 2010 with Apapane (Jpn) (King Kamehameha {Jpn}) and in 2018 with Almond Eye (Jpn) (Lord Kanaloa {Jpn}). “She won the Grade 1 at the end of her 2-year-old year but I've always thought she would do better with more distance. The change to Tokyo is a plus and I'm expecting her to do better than she did in her last race.”

 

 

 

Stars on Earth was runner-up to Lilac (Jpn) (Orfevre {Jpn}) in January's G3 Fairy S. and to Presage Lift (Jpn) (Harbinger {GB}) in the G3 Daily Hai Queen Cup Feb. 12 before overcoming some anxious moments in the straight to just touch off Water Navillera (Jpn) (Silver State {Jpn}) in the Oka Sho. While she had a middle gate in the Guineas, she will have to overcome the widest alley in the Oaks for Christophe Lemaire.

Namur was a disappointing 10th as the favourite in the Oka Sho, but she was done no favours by the barrier draw, as she was never able to get in from the 18 hole. That effort is best taken with a grain of salt. Conversely, Water Navillera sat a clean trip just off the pace last time and was unlucky not to win. She has theoretically the shortest way around from the rail. Yutaka Take has won the Oaks three times, but not since 1996 aboard Air Groove (Jpn).

Sheikh Fahad's lightly raced Art House (Jpn) (Screen Hero {Jpn}) will have her share of admirers off a visually impressive victory beneath Yuga Kawada in the Listed Wasurenaugusa Sho (2000m) Apr. 10.

The post Circle of Life Can Turn The Tables in Yushun Himba appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Source of original post

Sodashi Tops Victoria Mile

Juvenile filly champion Sodashi (Jpn) (Kurofune) punched her ticket to this fall's GI Breeders' Cup Filly & Mare Turf with a victory in Sunday's G1 Victoria Mile at Tokyo Racecourse. The top three finishers in Sunday's race also earned automatic berths in the G1 Prix du Moulin de Longchamp as well as the G1 Prix Jacques le Marois.

Breaking alertly from stall 5, the fourth betting choice settled in along the inside in a close-up fourth before moving slightly outward for the stretch run. Emerging from the pack passing the 200-meter pole, the 4-year-old caught pacesetter Rosa Noir (Jpn) (Manhattan Café {Jpn}) late and drew clear to win by two lengths over the closing Fine Rouge (Jpn) (Kizuna (Jpn}). Resistencia (Jpn) (Daiwa Major {Jpn}) was a neck back in third, nosing out the pacesetter.

Sodashi reeled off four consecutive wins at two, capping off the season with a win in the G1 Hanshin Juvenile Fillies while earning a championship in the process. Victorious in the G1 Oka Sho (Japanese 1000 Guineas) in her sophomore debut, the striking grey was well beaten in the Japanese Oaks at Tokyo in May but bounced back to take the G2 Sapporo Kinen later that summer. Well beaten in her final two starts of the season in the Oct. 17 G1 Shuka Sho and G1 Champion's Cup Dec. 5, she returned at four with a credible third over the course in the Feb. 20 G1 February S. last time out.

Sunday, Tokyo, Japan
VICTORIA MILE-G1, ¥253,400,000, Tokyo, 5-15, 4yo & up fillies, 1600mT, 1:32.20, firm
1–SODASHI (JPN), 121, f, 4, by Kurofune
1st Dam: Buchiko (Jpn), by King Kamehameha (Jpn)
2nd Dam: Shirayukihime (Jpn), by Sunday Silence
3rd Dam: Wave Wind, by Topsider
O-Makoto Kaneko Holdings; B-Northern Farm; T-Naosuke
Sugai; J-Hayato Yoshida; ¥133,780,000. Lifetime Record:
Ch. 2yo & 3yo Filly-Jpn, 11-7-0-1. *Full to Mama Cocha (Jpn), GSP-Jpn.
2–Fine Rouge (Jpn), 121, f, 4, Kizuna (Jpn)-Passion Rouge (Jpn),
by Boston Harbor. (¥33,000,000 wnlg '18 JRHAJUL). O-Genichi
Mutsui; B-Northern Farm; ¥53,080,000.
3–Resistencia (Jpn), 121, m, 5, Daiwa Major (Jpn)–Malacost-
umbrada (Arg), by Lizard Island. O-Carrot Farm; B- Northern
Farm; ¥33,540,000.
Margins: 4, NK, NK; Odds: 0.30, 74.20, 13.70.
Also Ran: Rosa Noir (Jpn), Songline (Jpn), Daring Tact (Jpn), Ablaze (Jpn), AkaiIto (Jpn), Shadow Diva (Jpn), Miss New York (Jpn), Divina (Jpn), Lei Papale (Jpn), Terzetto (Jpn), Andvaranaut (Jpn), Des Ailes (Jpn), Kurino Premium (Jpn), Magic Castle (Jpn), Meisho Mimosa (Jpn).
Click for the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree. Click for the JRA chart and video.

The post Sodashi Tops Victoria Mile appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Source of original post

Big Shoes To Fill In Victoria Mile

A deep and diverse field of 18 distaff turf milers will take to the Fuchu course at Toyko Sunday afternoon for the G1 Victoria Mile, a race won in its last three renewals by the outstanding Normcore (Jpn) (Harbinger {GB}, 2019), two-time Horse of the Year Almond Eye (Jpn) (Lord Kanaloa {Jpn}, 2020) and treble champion Gran Alegria (Jpn) (Deep Impact {Jpn}, 2021). The Victoria Mile serves as a 'Win and You're In' event for the GI Breeders' Cup Mile at Keeneland this November.

Several of Sunday's entrants are on a similar trajectory to those world-class gallopers, including Daring Tact (Jpn) (Epiphaneia {Jpn}), who completed the Filly Triple Crown in 2020 and makes her first appearance since finishing third to countrymates Loves Only You (Jpn) (Deep Impact {Jpn}) and Glory Vase (Jpn) (Deep Impact {Jpn}) in the G1 FWD QE II Cup over 2000 metres last April. She has since recovered from ligamentitis in her right foreleg and is capable of a good showing first-up.

“She feels a little bigger now, but I've been able to see her improvement these past three weeks,” her jockey Kohei Matsuyama commented. “A mile might be her best trip now. It will be her first time over a mile at Tokyo, but she's won over a mile, so it shouldn't be a problem. It feels like a fresh start with her now, so I want to do my best.”

Runner-up to the high-class Schnell Meister (Ger) (Kingman {GB}) in last year's G1 NHK Mile Cup over Sunday's course and distance, Songline (Jpn) (Kizuna {Jpn}) won Tokyo's 1600-metre G2 Fuji S. last October and most recently gave Japan one of its four winners on the Saudi Cup program Feb. 26, taking out the G3 1351 Turf.

“She ran well in last year's NHK Mile Cup and Fuji S., both over a mile at Tokyo, so I think she can run a big race in the Victoria Mile, too,” jockey Kenichi Ikezoe said. “The field's strong this time as well, but I think Songline has a good enough chance and I look forward to her run on the day.”

Sodashi (Jpn) (Kurofune) proved narrowly best in last year's G1 Oka Sho (Japanese 1000 Guineas) going the metric mile and defeated Loves Only You in the 2000-metre G2 Sapporo Kinen in August. Following a pair of below-par performances, she hinted at better to come with a strong third in the G1 February S. over the local dirt course Feb. 20 and gets back to perhaps her best game Sunday.

 

 

 

Resistencia (Jpn) (Daiwa Major {Jpn}), sixth to Gran Alegria here a year ago, came from off the speed to be second in an incident-marred G1 Longines Hong Kong Sprint (1200m) in December, then made the running in the six-furlong G1 Takamatsunomiya Kinen Mar. 27 before yielding late to be sixth. Quieter riding tactics may be in the cards Sunday.

Fresh off a trip to the GI Kentucky Derby, Christophe Lemaire takes the ride on Fine Rouge (Jpn) (Kizuna {Jpn}) here. Third in the Guineas and second in the G1 Shuka Sho in October, she resumed with a sound runner-up effort in the G3 Tokyo Shimbun Hai over track and trip Feb. 6 and has been trained to peak Sunday.

The post Big Shoes To Fill In Victoria Mile appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Source of original post

Notable US-Breds in Japan: May 7, 2022

In this continuing series, we take a look ahead at US-bred and/or conceived runners entered for the upcoming weekend at the tracks on the Japan Racing Association circuit, with a focus on pedigree and/or performance in the sales ring. Here are the horses of interest for Saturday running at Chukyo Racecourse. The weekend's highlight takes place at Tokyo, where recent Group 2 winner Jean Gros (More Than Ready) steps up in grade for the G1 NHK Mile Cup over the metric mile:

Saturday, May 7, 2022
2nd-CKO, ¥9,900,000 ($76k), Maiden, 3yo, 1800m
CORDON ROUGE (f, 3, American Pharoah–Champagne Room, by Broken Vow) is the first foal from her dam, the Eclipse Award-winning filly of her generation in 2016 on the strength of her victory in that year's GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile Filles. Champagne Room was acquired privately by Northern Farm in 2018, foaled this filly Feb. 24, 2019, and was covered by Justify before being exported to Japan. Cordon Rouge, who is inbred 4×3 to 1990 GI Kentucky Derby hero Unbridled, has one start to her credit, a near-miss second going this course and distance Mar. 13 (video, SC 8). The filly's second dam, Lucky to Be Me (Bernstein), was sold to Katsumi Yoshida for $1.25 million in foal to Uncle Mo at Keeneland November in 2017 and is alread the dam of the Group 3-placed Fidele (Jpn) (Heart's Cry {Jpn}). B-Northern Farm (KY)

 

The post Notable US-Breds in Japan: May 7, 2022 appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Source of original post

Verified by MonsterInsights